|| || Graphic Organizer: Classroom-Library Lesson Plan Deconstruction Jennifer - Blue Lisa - Purple Dr. M. - Adobe
Lesson Plan Deconstruction – A.3.2 Copy and paste this graphic organizer onto your wiki page. Using different colors, each member of the partnership must respond to each bullet. A graphic organizer differs from a worksheet in several important ways.
Worksheet
Graphic Organizer
One correct response for each question or blank
A diversity of responses can be correct
Formal test-like quality to practice or assess knowledge
Not standardized, more open-ended
Usually does not include teaching (new information)
Can include new information to capitalize on instructional potential
Less flexibility
Greater differentiation and support for ELLs and special education students
Does not always stimulate higher-order thinking skills
More likely to provoke higher-order thinking due to open-endedness of the possible responses
A graphic organizer should be constructed as a tool for learning. This graphic organizer follows the lesson plan template on page 15 in CS4TRC. Read the additional information provided on this graphic organizer and use it to analyze the lesson plan you are deconstructing. Important: 1. Each partner should use a different color font to indicate her/his contributions to this collaborative assignment. Do not use black! 2. Where you see a diamond-shaped bullet (turned into a ‘v” by wikispaces), you will need to provide a response. 3. “Yes” and “no” (or variations of these such as “none”) are incomplete answers and will earn zero points, except as noted on the checklist. Reading Comprehension Strategy: Strategy Two- Using Sensory Images Instructional Level: Emerging Planning · Reading Comprehension Strategy (RCS) v Name the RCS. _ Using sensory images v Which AASL indicatorsalign with this reading comprehension strategy? Note both the number and the actual language of the indicator.
Too many here: 1.1.2- Use prior knowledge as context for new learning 1.1.9 Collaborate with others to broaden and deepen understanding 1.3.4- Contribute to the exchange of ideas within the learning community 1.4.2- Use interaction with and feedback from teachers and peers to guide own inquiry process 2.1.2 - Organize knowledge so that it is useful. 2.1.5- Collaborate with others to exchange ideas, develop new understandings, make decisions and solve problems. 2.2.4- Demonstrate personal productivity by completing products to express learning. 2.3.1- Connect understanding to the real world. 3.1.3 - Use writing and speaking skills to communicate new understandings effectively. 3.1.4- Use technology and other information tools to organize and display knowledge and understanding in ways that others can view, use and assess. 3.2.3- Demonstrate teamwork by working productively with others. 3.3.5 - Contribute to the exchange of ideas within and beyond the learning community. 3.4.1- Assess the processes by which learning was achieved in order to revise strategies and learn more effectively in the future. 4.1.1- Read, view, and listen for pleasure and personal growth. 4.1.3- Respond to literature and creative expressions of ideas in various formats and genres. 4.1.8 - Use creative and artistic formats to express personal learnings.
· Reading Development Level Note: The levels indicated on the CS4TRC lesson plans correspond roughly as follows: Emerging: Grades K-2 Advancing: Grades 2-3 Advanced: Grades 4-6 However, these are approximations. Depending on the reading proficiency of the students with whom you work, these grades levels should be adjusted up or down. I have used some of the advanced lesson with 8th-grade students. LS 5443 students who are interested in serving at the high school level should choose an advanced lesson for this assignment or email the professor for several high school examples from her forthcoming book.
· Instructional Strategies Review these strategies on page 13 in CS4TRC. v Which of these research-based instructional strategies have you used in your teaching? Name them. Cooperative Learning and Non-linguistic Representations I have recently used cooperative learning in my preschool classroom. In the program I work for we follow the High Scope curriculum and do small and large group activities daily that require students to interact with each other. Good. I’ve taught for 26 years and I’ve taught children to read throughout most of my teaching career in grades K-1-2 and 3. In addition, our school recently adopted a reading program called Literacy by Design that addresses the very instructional strategies noted by Marzano, Pickering and Polcock. I’ve used many of these components often over the past three years : Planning and setting objectives and then revisiting those objectives with students to review the effectiveness of the lesson · Building background knowledge –opportunities to involve parents and family members in building experiential vocabulary and connections a day prior to a lesson. · Identifying similarities and differences- teaching the use of metaphors and analogies · Summarizing and note taking- graphic. organizers (outline/web, flow charts) · Nonlinguistic representations- pictures of mental images w/ labeling, also using clapping, tapping, stomping to teach the rhythm and rhyme patterns of poetry · Cooperative learning- small group and partner work, pair, share · “Fix Up” options- teaching children the tools to use to monitor their own comprehension. These are mounted in the classroom in the shapes of tools you would find in a toolbox. · Teaching children to summarize what they have read and what they have learned · Classifying and categorizing · Questioning, cues and advanced organizers: I model thinking aloud while reading and pose questions or discuss cues that help to understand a reading passage
Your partnership, in terms of background knowledge and experience, will benefit from your differences!
v Which of these instructional strategies do you need to learn? Name them and describe them.
Setting objectives and providing feedback – state what you want students to do or achieve by the end of a lesson or unit and give students feedback throughout the lesson. Feedback could also include encouragement so that students won’t get frustrated and give up when they are struggling There is always room to grow as a teacher and although I’ve used many of these instructional strategies throughout my career, I could still use more time to practice using some of these strategies regularly in my teaching. I would probably focus on summarizing and note taking and using graphic organizers. Also, I would say that taking time to reflect at the end of each lesson with students so that they become more aware of what they have learned and what they should revisit with regard to the lesson.
Yes, student-friendly objectives, feedback, and reflection are all important in helping learners succeed.
There are many tools of teaching the identifying similarities and differences strategy: Venn diagrams, category matrices, category webs, and creating metaphors/analogies. Sometimes we get stuck using one over and over.
Advanced organizers are often overlooked... They provide students with background knowledge if they lack it. Admit Slips and Anticipation Guides are two such graphic organizers.
· Lesson Length
v What are your questions about the lesson length? You must have at least one. This particular lesson is a two day lesson (2 sessions). Does it need to be 2 days or can it be combined into one day? How long (time -20min., 30min. ???) should each session be? Lesson length is based on a 45-minute session (see page 15).
The lesson appears to take the course of only two days. To me, this seems an insufficient amount of time to use with this lesson in kindergarten or first grade. I imagine the lesson to take no more than 30 min. but I think to be effective the lesson should stretch over at least three days, with an additional day for the students to practice the skills independently or in partnerships. Does the collaboration require both educators to be available for the entire lesson if it is extended? How does this collaboration affect the other duties of the librarian?
Educators need to adjust the lesson length to meet the needs of students. They can decide if selected components would be just as successful with one rather than two educators. In this case, the center activity would be better facilitated by two educators. Also, whenever students write, two or more adults is ideal!
Note: If you have worked within the constraints of a fixed schedule in which students come to the library just one time per week, there are many options for increasing the amount of time you spend with students. School librarians must think about the fact that NO other teachers in their buildings introduce and teach a concept on Tuesday morning at 10:00 and NEVER mention it again until the next Tuesday morning at 10:00. This is simply not an effective instructional practice. What are your strategies for getting out of the fixed schedule library box? Flexible scheduling is only as effective as the librarians who manage the school library media center. Defining clear policies and keeping chaos to a minimum is imperative for the success of flexible scheduling. Students and teachers need to frequent the library often and be actively engaged in learning. Members of the school community come to the library for a variety of reasons and the library should be a place for both formal and unscheduled visits. Providing an effective library program is difficult to accomplish without flexible scheduling. Employing trained, qualified personnel is also essential in keeping things running smoothly. I would be sure to emphasize this point to my principal. Without this support, the school librarian will find it difficult to meet the needs of the school community. Flexible scheduling is important, but in order to be effective, the school librarian must solicit the help of parent volunteers or ask the principal to provide the manpower by hiring part-time or full-time library aides.
Of course, flexible scheduling requires support. Hopefully a full-time paraprofessional will manage the daily operations while the librarian is teaching. From my perspective, there is no reason for a person with an MLS to do clerical tasks. Student aides and parent volunteers can help... but the principal/district shows commitment when a full-time clerk is on the library staff.
Providing the community with access to the school library beyond the school day is important but not always sufficient. Students and teachers, as well as parents may require access to the library and its resources before and after regular school hours. Yet, having extended hours in the school library does not always mean keeping the library doors opened until dinnertime. Extending library hours can be accomplished in some communities by providing unlimited access to an organized, user-friendly, easy-to-enter school Website. I would definitely employ the assistance of the tech coordinator to build a quality school library website. Users must be able to navigate the Web page efficiently, so much effort must be devoted to the design and content of the school’s website. Enabling the school community to access the library’s resources may include hiring additional support staff to manage and supervise the school library for use during after school programs or on the weekends. I would also solicit the help of parent volunteers throughout the school day and maintain a schedule of reliable assistance. Whether scheduling in the library is flexible or fixed, the doors are opened for longer periods of time, or access to the library resources is through a portal, the school library requires the manpower to manage and maintain this access.
Sometimes grant funding can support the after school hours effort. When I was a high school librarian, my co-librarian and I staggered our schedules to cover before and after school hours.
Any thoughts, Jennifer?
· Purpose v How is the purpose of the lesson connected—or not connected—to your idea of the type of instruction that “should” take place in the school library? · Objectives The purpose of the lesson is to enrich comprehension using a multi-sensory approach and to support literacy in a collaborative situation. The instructional approach seems to be appropriate for the SL/Teacher collaboration. I would think that the classroom teacher, prior to the collaborative effort, could do a lot of the “background work” in terms of identifying the five senses and building experiential knowledge so that the first session is more productive. Connected – This lesson connects with instruction that should take place in the library, in my opinion, because it incorporates books and poems that could be found at the library. It also gives students the option to use the computers to draw a picture of their poem, or type their poem and share it on a website. Not Connected – In the first session of this lesson students are required to use their senses to observe and explore items related to the ocean. I feel like this part could be done in the science lab or during science time. Agreed.I believe school librarians do themselves, the library program, and the profession a disservice when they narrowly define their work in terms of "information literacy" only.
Review Bloom’s Taxonomy: http://www.odu.edu/educ/roverbau/Bloom/blooms_taxonomy.htm v List at least one verb that is used to name what students will do for every objective in this lesson; list the corresponding level on Bloom’s. Use this chart. I have listed the objectives and verbs associated with the tasks the students will complete for this lesson.
Objective
Verb
Level on Bloom’s
Objective 1: Classify sensory images by the sense organ and sense used for that experience.
Objective 2: Utilize background knowledge and the category matrix to compose a group poem and compose and illustrate an individual list poem about a day at the beach.
Agreed. Note: Students are working at more than one level on Bloom's taxonomy.
Resources, Materials, and Equipment Children’s Literature- Hello Ocean by Pam Munoz Ryan Until I Saw the Sea: a Collection of Seashore Poems by Alison Shaw Websites-
Graphic Organizers- Category Matrix (Web Supplement 4B) Sensory List Poem Graphic Organizer (Web Supplement 4C) Sensory List Poem and Illustration Rubric (Web Supplement 4D) Materials- Equipment v Which are the different formats or genres used to support learners? In this lesson there are three different formats of literature used: Hello Ocean by Pam Munoz and Illustrated by mark Astrella, Until I saw the Sea: A Collection of Seashore Poems by Alison Shaw, and Text set on the topic of oceans and beaches. There are also many different graphic organizers used such as: Category Matrix, Sensory List Poem Graphic Organizer, Sensory List Poem and Illustration Rubric. Agreed. School librarians should shine in the area of providing resources in multiple genres and formats. v Which technology tools are used? If technology is not used in this lesson, do you think there are appropriate tools to help students meet the lesson objectives? Name those tools and how you would use them. Technology is used in this lesson by incorporating the overhead projector, data projector, interactive whiteboard and computers for typing. In the Extension part of the lesson students are given the choice to use the web to publish their poems. Technology tools should be integrated if they help students meet the objectives. · Collaboration v How does this lesson maximize the benefits of two (or more) educators coteaching? Be specific.
·Collaborative planning, between the librarian and teacher, enables the delivery of more efficient instruction that is engaging, promotes higher order thinking, and integrates a variety of information sources into student learning.
· Once a school librarian and teacher begin to work collaboratively, they can work together to develop a plan that integrates content-area skills with information literacy skills in a lesson that requires students to think in critical and creative ways.
· Through collaboration, the expertise of both the teacher and the librarian come together to benefit the student.
Coteaching lowers the student to teacher ratio and allows for more individual attention so that students receive assistance and guidance when necessary. In my personal experience, this would be an ideal situation, as I can recall too often feeling overwhelmed with the number of times my name is call upon for help!
This lesson maximizes the benefits of two educators because students are able to learn in a smaller groups rather than a large group (whole class). During a shared writing activity the class is split into two smaller groups and each educator helps with shared writing. Students receive more one on one attention when there are two educators involved in the monitoring of students work and teacher-student conferences also.
Agreed.
· Assessment v Are there multiple methods/tools for assessing student outcomes? If there’s one, name it. If there are multiple, name them. The teachers and students may use a poem rubric to assess the poems and illustrations. Although with students of this young age, the rubric must be age appropriate (perhaps a simple checklist). In this lesson a Poem Rubric is used to assess students work. Teachers also assess students work by reading their poems to see if they demonstrate an understanding of sensory images. Did you review the graphic organizers for this lesson? 4A - 4D at: http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/publishing/editions/webextras/moreillon09294/moreillon09294.cfm#4
v Are there opportunities for learners to self assess? (AASL Strand #4: Self-Assessment Strategies) What are they? Students are encouraged to compare their illustrations with the words used in the poem. I often tell students that "a picture paints a thousand words" and that they should look to the words they have used in any of their writing to include more details in the illustrations- setting, characters, actions, etc. Yes, students have the opportunity to self assess their own poems and illustrations using the rubric provided. Students conference with a teacher after writing their poems to self assess with support.
Is reflection a form of self-assessment?
· Standards Reading and/or writing- key words: comprehend, respond, story elements (setting) Listening and speaking- key words: effectively listen and speak; use effective vocabulary Other content areas- Science: five senses and their related body parts, compare common objects using multiple senses Information literacy- key words: select information appropriate to the problem or question at hand; organize information for practical application Educational technology- key words: keyboard, illustrate, publish
Please see the class feedback regarding standards. Which of these standards are actually assessed in this lesson? Only standards/objectives that are measured should be included.
v What content-area standards are integrated into this lesson? List them. Use specific standards from state standards in Texas or the state you and your partner have negotiated. Note: These lesson plans were published before AASL’s Standards for the 21st Century Learner were available. Standards obtained from: RISD Curriculum Committee, written May, 2004 (as I am not real familiar with the current Texas standards: I have included those from one of Dr. M.'s PowerPoints from Module 2). Do these standards look correct to you? Reading and/or writing- · (12) Reading/comprehension. The student uses a variety of strategies to comprehend selections · read aloud and selections read independently. The student is expected to: · (B) establish purposes for reading and listening such as to be informed, to follow directions, and to be entertained (K-3); Reading/culture. The student reads or listens to increase knowledge of his/her own culture, the culture of others, and the common elements of cultures. The student is expected to: · connect his/her own experiences with the life experiences, languages, customs, and culture of others (K-3); and · (B) compare experiences of characters across cultures (K-3).
· (19) Writing/writing processes. The student selects and uses writing processes to compose original text. The student is expected to: · generate ideas before writing on self-selected topics (K-1); · generate ideas before writing on assigned tasks (K-1); · (E) use available technology to compose text (K-3).
· (14) Reading/text structures/literary concepts. The student recognizes characteristics of various types of texts. The student is expected to: · (D) recognize the distinguishing features of familiar genres, including stories, poems, · and informational texts (1-3); · (E) understand literary forms by recognizing and distinguishing among such types of text · as stories, poems, and information books (K-2); · (F) understand literary terms by distinguishing between the roles of the author and illustrator such as the author writes the story and the illustrator draws the pictures (K-1);
Listening and speaking- Listening/speaking/purposes. The student listens attentively and engages actively in a variety of oral language experiences. The student is expected to: · determine the purpose(s) for listening such as to get information, to solve problems, · and to enjoy and appreciate (K-3); · respond appropriately and courteously to directions and questions (K-3); · listen critically to interpret and evaluate (K-3); · listen responsively to stories and other texts read aloud, including selections from · classic and contemporary works (K-3); Other content areas-
Information literacy- · (15) Reading/inquiry/research. The student generates questions and conducts research about · topics using information from a variety of sources, including selections read aloud. The student is · expected to: · identify relevant questions for inquiry such as "What do pill bugs eat?" (K-3); · use pictures, print, and people to gather information and answer questions (K-1); · draw conclusions from information gathered (K-3);
Educational technology- · (E) use available technology to compose text (K-3).
v (4) Reading/Beginning Reading/Strategies. Students comprehend a variety of texts drawing on useful strategies as needed. Students are expected to: (B) ask and respond to questions about texts read aloud. (5) Reading/Vocabulary Development. Students understand new vocabulary and use it correctly when reading and writing. Students are expected to: (A) identify and use words that name actions, directions, positions, sequences, and locations; 6) Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Theme and Genre. Students analyze, make inferences and draw conclusions about theme and genre in different cultural, historical, and contemporary contexts and provide evidence from the text to support their understanding. Students are expected to: (C) recognize sensory details (13) Writing/Writing Process. Students use elements of the writing process (planning, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing) to compose text. Students (with adult assistance) are expected to: (A) plan a first draft by generating ideas for writing through class discussion; (E) share writing with others. (18) Writing/Literary Texts. Students write literary texts to express their ideas and feelings about real or imagined people, events, and ideas. Students are expected to: (B) write short poems that convey sensory details. (28) Listening and Speaking/Speaking. Students speak clearly and to the point, using the conventions of language. Students continue to apply earlier standards with greater complexity. Students are expected to share information and ideas about the topic under discussion, speaking clearly at an appropriate pace, using the conventions of language. (29) Listening and Speaking/Teamwork. Students work productively with others in teams. Students continue to apply earlier standards with greater complexity. Students are expected to follow agreed-upon rules for discussion, including listening to others, speaking when recognized, and making appropriate contributions.
Note: These lesson plans were published before AASL’s Standards for the 21st Century Learner were available.
v Which AASL indicators align with this lesson? Give both the number and the description for each. (I fail to see the difference between this question and the question regarding the AASL indicators aligned with the reading comprehension strategy. I think all of these indicators align with both the RCS and the lesson.) I'm not quite sure how to separate the two...
The indicators below are from the AASL S4L. The ones above are from the TEKS. In both cases, I think too many are listed. These are the S4L I identified for this lesson: http://storytrail.com/Impact/Chapter_4/main1.htm
1.4.2- Use interaction with and feedback from teachers and peers to guide own inquiry process 1.1.9 Collaborate with others to broaden and deepen understanding 1.3.4- Contribute to the exchange of ideas within the learning community
2.1.2 - Organize knowledge so that it is useful._ 2.1.5- Collaborate with others to exchange ideas, develop new understandings, make decisions and solve problems. 2.2.4- Demonstrate personal productivity by completing products to express learning. 2.3.1- Connect understanding to the real world.
3.1.3 - Use writing and speaking skills to communicate new understandings effectively. 3.1.4- Use technology and other information tools to organize and display knowledge and understanding in ways that others can view, use and assess. 3.2.3- Demonstrate teamwork by working productively with others.
3.3.5 - Contribute to the exchange of ideas within and beyond the learning community. 3.4.1- Assess the processes by which learning was achieved in order to revise strategies and learn more effectively in the future. 4.1.1- Read, view, and listen for pleasure and personal growth.
4.1.3- Respond to literature and creative expressions of ideas in various formats and genres. 4.1.8 - Use creative and artistic formats to express personal learnings.
Implementation
· Process Motivation
Motivation is also known as “anticipatory set” in the Madeline Hunter, EEI lesson plan design.
v Will this invitation to learn be effective in capturing students’ interest? Why or why not?
Playing "ocean music" can be relaxing for children, but I think the motivation process is more effective using the sensory center for students to use their five senses to explore items from the beach. Of course, I've been teaching in a desert that is located on the Persian Gulf so my students would be eager to participate. You'd be surprised just how many students (from my area and elsewhere) who don't go to the beach. I think inviting children to bring one item that they have found or used at the beach will add more to the "anticipatory set" because children will make a personal connection to the activity.
In the first session of this lesson, students rotate through sensory centers, and I think it will be very effective because it is hands on. Students have the opportunity to actually see, touch, smell, etc. items from the beach or ocean. It is the next best thing to taking them to the beach, so I think it will help students start to think about the ocean before beginning the lesson.
Agreed. This is critical background knowledge particularly for desert or mountain students who may have never seen the ocean. You're right. Motivation in the younger grades is not as much of an issue as it becomes in upper grades. Hmmmmm....
v What are your ideas to increase student buy-in to this lesson? Give at least one. Well I think a beach unit would be awesome, and could incorporate this lesson. I live near the beach (Corpus Christi) so, I think it would be awesome to actually take students on a field trip to the beach to get the experience. I understand field trips are not always easy to plan and engage in, but I do believe providing students with real experiences is the key to helping them “buy-in” on lessons. Agreed
I would capture student interest by providing additional opportunities for students to bring in something they have found on a beach somewhere to use in the creation of their own group or personal list poem, and if at all possible, I'd organize a field trip to the beach. Agreed
Student-friendly Objectives
v Are these objectives at the instructional level of the targeted students? Give an example.
Classifying sensory images and using all five senses are certainly appropriate to the level of the targeted students. I'm not so sure about the category matrix, but composing a group poem is definitely an appropriate outcome. I'm not familiar with the matrix and I'd would have to actually use it a time or two to make a more informed judgment. Yes, I think the student-friendly objectives in this lesson target Emerging students around the 1st grade level. There is only 2 or 3 objectives which is manageable for younger students, and will help them not feel frustrated or overwhelmed. Day 1 Objectives: 1. Use all five senses. 2. Classify sensory images. Agreed v Are there terms in these objectives that may need to be taught to students? Give an example. I think for Day 1 Objective 2 (Classify sensory images) the word “classify” may need to be explained to younger students. I also think on Day 2 Objective 3 (Use the rubric to self-assess the poem and the illustration), the words “self-assess” will probably need to be taught
Vocabulary needs to be developed throughout the lesson. Story elements, and comprehend are words that need to be addressed with young students (perhaps stating them in simpler terms might be necessary). Organizing information and self-assessing are processes that needs to be modeled, not just explained.
Coteaching vocabulary, strategies, and procedures is one of the benefits of classroom-library collaboration. When students use terms and processes in multiple environments, they are more likely to retain it.
Presentation
v Describe the modeling aspect of this lesson. In this lesson one teacher reads a book about the ocean and the other teacher listens, like the students (modeling what they should be doing), then shares her visualization of the ocean and beach focusing on the sensory details. The teacher listening is modeling the whole time what the students should be doing and gives them an example of how to verbalize what they are seeing in their head as they listen to the story.
v How are the benefits of two or more educators maximized in the presentation component? On Day 2 of the lesson, the class is split up into two smaller groups and the teachers’ help students come up with a group poem about the ocean. This helps students get more one-on-one attention and allows for their opinions and thoughts to be heard more, than it would working in a large (whole class) group.
The students are divided into two different groups and that makes managing the questioning techniques easier. It also gives the students the opportunity to participate and contribute more to the group poem. There is more active participation with a smaller group.
Agreed Student Participation Procedures or Student Practice Procedures
v Are the directions clear? Give an example. Yes, I believe the directions are clear and to the point. Example: 1. Think-pair-share. 2. Raise hand to share with the class. 3. Tell which sense and color of marker should be used to record information on the matrix. The directions are very clear. After the students share their visualizations with a partner, one educator will be the recorder while the other elicits responses from the children. Agreed Guided Practice
v How are the benefits of two or more educators maximized in the guided practice component? Conferences – both teachers are able to conference with students and help them self-asses their poems. Having two teachers available to conference one-one-one with students allows for students to get more individualized help and attention. It is very stressful for one teacher to conference with 20 or so students in a short amount of time, so having two teachers conducting conferences means less stress for the teacher.
Both educators monitor the students sensory imagery in their poems while reminding them to use the rubric to guide their work. Conferencing with students is ongoing throughout this part of the lesson.
Yes, support for writing conferences is one aspect of coteaching that classroom teachers especially value.
Closure
v Are students active in the closure component? What are students doing for closure? Day 1 students are not really active in the closure because they are just listening to the re-reading of the book “Hello Ocean.” In Day 2 students are really active in the closure because they are asked to share their poems with the class, and the students that are listening to their peers read are asked to find the strongest sense in each poem and whisper it to a partner.
The class comes together at the end of Day 2 to share their poems and illustrations. Students are asked to identify the strongest sense in each poem read as they whisper their response to a classmate.
Actually, the students also come together at the end of Day 1 to share the group poems. The sensory List Poem and Illustration are used on Day 1 to assess the group poems and then brainstorming ideas for illustrating the group poems are shared.
Yes, I believe this is one weakness of this lesson. The first-day closure is teacher directed. Students could be asked to review the group category matrix.
Reflection
v How is the reflection component related to the learning objectives? In this lesson the reflection has a list of questions, one being: How did the sensory images help us understand spending a day at the ocean? I think this question relates to the 1st Objective: Classify sensory images by the sense organ and sense used for that experience. Students will have to connect their ocean experiences with their senses.
The reflection circles back to both objectives. The students think about how the sensory images help them understand a day at the ocean, and with guidance they have an opportunity reflect on what background knowledge they brought to the activity and what knowledge was gained from the participating in activity.
Making time for reflection is sometimes difficult. If we value metacognition (being able to articulate what we learned and how we learned it), then we should insist that students have time to reflect.
· Extensions
v What are your other ideas for extensions to this lesson? Describe at least one. Well this lesson can be extended in so many ways. Aside from actually taking students to the beach on a field trip, I think it would be neat for students to sort sea shells from the beach by appearance and characteristics. Then students could write a poem just on sea shells. Yes, great idea, and to stay with the "using sensory images" RCS, they could describe their categories using sensory details that would appear in their poems.
This is a good lead into a science unit about attributes of earth materials (rocks, seashells, sand, soil). The lesson can also be extended with the help of the technology facilitator to make a poetry presentation through the use of images and audio in order to share their poems with another class or with the parents. Additional poetry lessons and opportunities to use Writer's Workshop to compose poetry would be of high interest to the students at this point.
Finally, I would spend the time with students to find other books that use sensory images to convey feelings or elicit mental images. I would utilize a poetry corner where students could write their own poems or peruse other poetry books. I'd also create a word wall to display and develop vocabulary.
Brilliant! All of these ideas provide further opportunities to integrate the resources on the library and the expertise of the school library.
Brava for your thoughtful and thorough analysis of this lesson.
Remember: Extensions are further invitations to classroom-library collaboration. They are worth thinking about during the planning stage!
Plus Individual Reflection – 20 Possible Points – See the A.3.2 Rubric for details.
Deconstruction
Jennifer - Blue
Lisa - Purple
Dr. M. - Adobe
Lesson Plan Deconstruction – A.3.2
Copy and paste this graphic organizer onto your wiki page. Using different colors, each member of the partnership must respond to each bullet.
A graphic organizer differs from a worksheet in several important ways.
Important:
1. Each partner should use a different color font to indicate her/his contributions to this collaborative assignment. Do not use black!
2. Where you see a diamond-shaped bullet (turned into a ‘v” by wikispaces), you will need to provide a response.
3. “Yes” and “no” (or variations of these such as “none”) are incomplete answers and will earn zero points, except as noted on the checklist.
Reading Comprehension Strategy: Strategy Two- Using Sensory Images
Instructional Level: Emerging
Planning
· Reading Comprehension Strategy (RCS)
v Name the RCS.
_ Using sensory images
v Which AASL indicators align with this reading comprehension strategy? Note both the number and the actual language of the indicator.
Which S4L indicator (1 or 2) align with this strategy. Here are my ideas:
RCS and S4L Alignment Matrix - http://storytrail.com/Impact/matrix.htm
Too many here:
1.1.2- Use prior knowledge as context for new learning
1.1.9 Collaborate with others to broaden and deepen understanding
1.3.4- Contribute to the exchange of ideas within the learning community
1.4.2- Use interaction with and feedback from teachers and peers to guide own inquiry process
2.1.2 - Organize knowledge so that it is useful.
2.1.5- Collaborate with others to exchange ideas, develop new understandings, make decisions and solve problems.
2.2.4- Demonstrate personal productivity by completing products to express learning.
2.3.1- Connect understanding to the real world.
3.1.3 - Use writing and speaking skills to communicate new understandings effectively.
3.1.4- Use technology and other information tools to organize and display knowledge and understanding in ways that others can view, use and assess.
3.2.3- Demonstrate teamwork by working productively with others.
3.3.5 - Contribute to the exchange of ideas within and beyond the learning community.
3.4.1- Assess the processes by which learning was achieved in order to revise strategies and learn more effectively in the future.
4.1.1- Read, view, and listen for pleasure and personal growth.
4.1.3- Respond to literature and creative expressions of ideas in various formats and genres.
4.1.8 - Use creative and artistic formats to express personal learnings.
· Reading Development Level
Note: The levels indicated on the CS4TRC lesson plans correspond roughly as follows:
Emerging: Grades K-2
Advancing: Grades 2-3
Advanced: Grades 4-6
However, these are approximations. Depending on the reading proficiency of the students with whom you work, these grades levels should be adjusted up or down. I have used some of the advanced lesson with 8th-grade students. LS 5443 students who are interested in serving at the high school level should choose an advanced lesson for this assignment or email the professor for several high school examples from her forthcoming book.
· Instructional Strategies
Review these strategies on page 13 in CS4TRC.
v Which of these research-based instructional strategies have you used in your teaching? Name them.
Cooperative Learning and Non-linguistic Representations
I have recently used cooperative learning in my preschool classroom. In the program I work for we follow the High Scope curriculum and do small and large group activities daily that require students to interact with each other.
Good.
I’ve taught for 26 years and I’ve taught children to read throughout most of my teaching career in grades K-1-2 and 3. In addition, our school recently adopted a reading program called Literacy by Design that addresses the very instructional strategies noted by Marzano, Pickering and Polcock. I’ve used many of these components often over the past three years :
Planning and setting objectives and then revisiting those objectives with students to review the effectiveness of the lesson
· Building background knowledge –opportunities to involve parents and family members in building experiential vocabulary and connections a day prior to a lesson.
· Identifying similarities and differences- teaching the use of metaphors and analogies
· Summarizing and note taking- graphic. organizers (outline/web, flow charts)
· Nonlinguistic representations- pictures of mental images w/ labeling, also using clapping, tapping, stomping to teach the rhythm and rhyme patterns of poetry
· Cooperative learning- small group and partner work, pair, share
· “Fix Up” options- teaching children the tools to use to monitor their own comprehension. These are mounted in the classroom in the shapes of tools you would find in a toolbox.
· Teaching children to summarize what they have read and what they have learned
· Classifying and categorizing
· Questioning, cues and advanced organizers: I model thinking aloud while reading and pose questions or discuss cues that help to understand a reading passage
Your partnership, in terms of background knowledge and experience, will benefit from your differences!
v Which of these instructional strategies do you need to learn? Name them and describe them.
Setting objectives and providing feedback – state what you want students to do or achieve by the end of a lesson or unit and give students feedback throughout the lesson.
Feedback could also include encouragement so that students won’t get frustrated and give up when they are struggling
There is always room to grow as a teacher and although I’ve used many of these instructional strategies throughout my career, I could still use more time to practice using some of these strategies regularly in my teaching. I would probably focus on summarizing and note taking and using graphic organizers. Also, I would say that taking time to reflect at the end of each lesson with students so that they become more aware of what they have learned and what they should revisit with regard to the lesson.
Yes, student-friendly objectives, feedback, and reflection are all important in helping learners succeed.
There are many tools of teaching the identifying similarities and differences strategy: Venn diagrams, category matrices, category webs, and creating metaphors/analogies. Sometimes we get stuck using one over and over.
Advanced organizers are often overlooked... They provide students with background knowledge if they lack it. Admit Slips and Anticipation Guides are two such graphic organizers.
· Lesson Length
v What are your questions about the lesson length? You must have at least one.
This particular lesson is a two day lesson (2 sessions). Does it need to be 2 days or can it be combined into one day? How long (time -20min., 30min. ???) should each session be?
Lesson length is based on a 45-minute session (see page 15).
The lesson appears to take the course of only two days. To me, this seems an insufficient amount of time to use with this lesson in kindergarten or first grade. I imagine the lesson to take no more than 30 min. but I think to be effective the lesson should stretch over at least three days, with an additional day for the students to practice the skills independently or in partnerships. Does the collaboration require both educators to be available for the entire lesson if it is extended? How does this collaboration affect the other duties of the librarian?
Educators need to adjust the lesson length to meet the needs of students. They can decide if selected components would be just as successful with one rather than two educators. In this case, the center activity would be better facilitated by two educators. Also, whenever students write, two or more adults is ideal!
Note: If you have worked within the constraints of a fixed schedule in which students come to the library just one time per week, there are many options for increasing the amount of time you spend with students. School librarians must think about the fact that NO other teachers in their buildings introduce and teach a concept on Tuesday morning at 10:00 and NEVER mention it again until the next Tuesday morning at 10:00. This is simply not an effective instructional practice. What are your strategies for getting out of the fixed schedule library box?
Flexible scheduling is only as effective as the librarians who manage the school library media center. Defining clear policies and keeping chaos to a minimum is imperative for the success of flexible scheduling. Students and teachers need to frequent the library often and be actively engaged in learning. Members of the school community come to the library for a variety of reasons and the library should be a place for both formal and unscheduled visits. Providing an effective library program is difficult to accomplish without flexible scheduling. Employing trained, qualified personnel is also essential in keeping things running smoothly. I would be sure to emphasize this point to my principal. Without this support, the school librarian will find it difficult to meet the needs of the school community. Flexible scheduling is important, but in order to be effective, the school librarian must solicit the help of parent volunteers or ask the principal to provide the manpower by hiring part-time or full-time library aides.
Of course, flexible scheduling requires support. Hopefully a full-time paraprofessional will manage the daily operations while the librarian is teaching. From my perspective, there is no reason for a person with an MLS to do clerical tasks. Student aides and parent volunteers can help... but the principal/district shows commitment when a full-time clerk is on the library staff.
Providing the community with access to the school library beyond the school day is important but not always sufficient. Students and teachers, as well as parents may require access to the library and its resources before and after regular school hours. Yet, having extended hours in the school library does not always mean keeping the library doors opened until dinnertime. Extending library hours can be accomplished in some communities by providing unlimited access to an organized, user-friendly, easy-to-enter school Website. I would definitely employ the assistance of the tech coordinator to build a quality school library website. Users must be able to navigate the Web page efficiently, so much effort must be devoted to the design and content of the school’s website. Enabling the school community to access the library’s resources may include hiring additional support staff to manage and supervise the school library for use during after school programs or on the weekends. I would also solicit the help of parent volunteers throughout the school day and maintain a schedule of reliable assistance. Whether scheduling in the library is flexible or fixed, the doors are opened for longer periods of time, or access to the library resources is through a portal, the school library requires the manpower to manage and maintain this access.
Sometimes grant funding can support the after school hours effort. When I was a high school librarian, my co-librarian and I staggered our schedules to cover before and after school hours.
Any thoughts, Jennifer?
· Purpose
v How is the purpose of the lesson connected—or not connected—to your idea of the type of instruction that “should” take place in the school library?
· Objectives
The purpose of the lesson is to enrich comprehension using a multi-sensory approach and to support literacy in a collaborative situation. The instructional approach seems to be appropriate for the SL/Teacher collaboration. I would think that the classroom teacher, prior to the collaborative effort, could do a lot of the “background work” in terms of identifying the five senses and building experiential knowledge so that the first session is more productive.
Connected – This lesson connects with instruction that should take place in the library, in my opinion, because it incorporates books and poems that could be found at the library. It also gives students the option to use the computers to draw a picture of their poem, or type their poem and share it on a website.
Not Connected – In the first session of this lesson students are required to use their senses to observe and explore items related to the ocean. I feel like this part could be done in the science lab or during science time.
Agreed.I believe school librarians do themselves, the library program, and the profession a disservice when they narrowly define their work in terms of "information literacy" only.
Review Bloom’s Taxonomy: http://www.odu.edu/educ/roverbau/Bloom/blooms_taxonomy.htm
v List at least one verb that is used to name what students will do for every objective in this lesson; list the corresponding level on Bloom’s. Use this chart.
I have listed the objectives and verbs associated with the tasks the students will complete for this lesson.
Classify sensory images by the sense organ and sense used for that experience.
Classify
Understanding
Utilize, Compose, Illustrate
list, recall, repeat, reproduce, state
Applying
Remembering
Resources, Materials, and Equipment
Children’s Literature- Hello Ocean by Pam Munoz Ryan
Until I Saw the Sea: a Collection of Seashore Poems by Alison Shaw
Websites-
Graphic Organizers- Category Matrix (Web Supplement 4B)
Sensory List Poem Graphic Organizer (Web Supplement 4C)
Sensory List Poem and Illustration Rubric (Web Supplement 4D)
Materials-
Equipment
v Which are the different formats or genres used to support learners?
In this lesson there are three different formats of literature used: Hello Ocean by Pam Munoz and Illustrated by mark Astrella, Until I saw the Sea: A Collection of Seashore Poems by Alison Shaw, and Text set on the topic of oceans and beaches. There are also many different graphic organizers used such as: Category Matrix, Sensory List Poem Graphic Organizer, Sensory List Poem and Illustration Rubric.
Agreed. School librarians should shine in the area of providing resources in multiple genres and formats.
v Which technology tools are used? If technology is not used in this lesson, do you think there are appropriate tools to help students meet the lesson objectives? Name those tools and how you would use them.
Technology is used in this lesson by incorporating the overhead projector, data projector, interactive whiteboard and computers for typing.
In the Extension part of the lesson students are given the choice to use the web to publish their poems.
Technology tools should be integrated if they help students meet the objectives.
· Collaboration
v How does this lesson maximize the benefits of two (or more) educators coteaching? Be specific.
- · Collaborative planning, between the librarian and teacher, enables the delivery of more efficient instruction that is engaging, promotes higher order thinking, and integrates a variety of information sources into student learning.
- · Once a school librarian and teacher begin to work collaboratively, they can work together to develop a plan that integrates content-area skills with information literacy skills in a lesson that requires students to think in critical and creative ways.
- · Through collaboration, the expertise of both the teacher and the librarian come together to benefit the student.
- Coteaching lowers the student to teacher ratio and allows for more individual attention so that students receive assistance and guidance when necessary. In my personal experience, this would be an ideal situation, as I can recall too often feeling overwhelmed with the number of times my name is call upon for help!
This lesson maximizes the benefits of two educators because students are able to learn in a smaller groups rather than a large group (whole class). During a shared writing activity the class is split into two smaller groups and each educator helps with shared writing. Students receive more one on one attention when there are two educators involved in the monitoring of students work and teacher-student conferences also.Agreed.
· Assessment
v Are there multiple methods/tools for assessing student outcomes? If there’s one, name it. If there are multiple, name them.
The teachers and students may use a poem rubric to assess the poems and illustrations. Although with students of this young age, the rubric must be age appropriate (perhaps a simple checklist).
In this lesson a Poem Rubric is used to assess students work.
Teachers also assess students work by reading their poems to see if they demonstrate an understanding of sensory images.
Did you review the graphic organizers for this lesson? 4A - 4D at: http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/publishing/editions/webextras/moreillon09294/moreillon09294.cfm#4
v Are there opportunities for learners to self assess? (AASL Strand #4: Self-Assessment Strategies) What are they?
Students are encouraged to compare their illustrations with the words used in the poem. I often tell students that "a picture paints a thousand words" and that they should look to the words they have used in any of their writing to include more details in the illustrations- setting, characters, actions, etc.
Yes, students have the opportunity to self assess their own poems and illustrations using the rubric provided. Students conference with a teacher after writing their poems to self assess with support.
Is reflection a form of self-assessment?
· Standards
Reading and/or writing- key words: comprehend, respond, story elements (setting)
Listening and speaking- key words: effectively listen and speak; use effective vocabulary
Other content areas- Science: five senses and their related body parts, compare common objects using multiple senses
Information literacy- key words: select information appropriate to the problem or question at hand; organize information for practical application
Educational technology- key words: keyboard, illustrate, publish
Please see the class feedback regarding standards. Which of these standards are actually assessed in this lesson? Only standards/objectives that are measured should be included.
v What content-area standards are integrated into this lesson? List them. Use specific standards from state standards in Texas or the state you and your partner have negotiated.
Note: These lesson plans were published before AASL’s Standards for the 21st Century Learner were available.
Standards obtained from:
RISD Curriculum Committee, written May, 2004
(as I am not real familiar with the current Texas standards: I have included those from one of Dr. M.'s PowerPoints from Module 2). Do these standards look correct to you?
Reading and/or writing-
· (12) Reading/comprehension. The student uses a variety of strategies to comprehend selections
· read aloud and selections read independently. The student is expected to:
· (B) establish purposes for reading and listening such as to be informed, to follow
directions, and to be entertained (K-3);
Reading/culture.
The student reads or listens to increase knowledge of his/her own culture,
the culture of others, and the common elements of cultures. The student is expected to:
· connect his/her own experiences with the life experiences, languages, customs, and
culture of others (K-3); and
· (B) compare experiences of characters across cultures (K-3).
· (19) Writing/writing processes. The student selects and uses writing processes to compose
original text. The student is expected to:
· generate ideas before writing on self-selected topics (K-1);
· generate ideas before writing on assigned tasks (K-1);
· (E) use available technology to compose text (K-3).
· (14) Reading/text structures/literary concepts. The student recognizes characteristics of various types of texts. The student is expected to:
· (D) recognize the distinguishing features of familiar genres, including stories, poems,
· and informational texts (1-3);
· (E) understand literary forms by recognizing and distinguishing among such types of text
· as stories, poems, and information books (K-2);
· (F) understand literary terms by distinguishing between the roles of the author and
illustrator such as the author writes the story and the illustrator draws the pictures (K-1);
Listening and speaking-
Listening/speaking/purposes. The student listens attentively and engages actively in a variety
of oral language experiences. The student is expected to:
· determine the purpose(s) for listening such as to get information, to solve problems,
· and to enjoy and appreciate (K-3);
· respond appropriately and courteously to directions and questions (K-3);
· listen critically to interpret and evaluate (K-3);
· listen responsively to stories and other texts read aloud, including selections from
· classic and contemporary works (K-3);
Other content areas-
Information literacy-
· (15) Reading/inquiry/research. The student generates questions and conducts research about
· topics using information from a variety of sources, including selections read aloud. The student is
· expected to:
· identify relevant questions for inquiry such as "What do pill bugs eat?" (K-3);
· use pictures, print, and people to gather information and answer questions (K-1);
· draw conclusions from information gathered (K-3);
Educational technology-
· (E) use available technology to compose text (K-3).
v (4) Reading/Beginning Reading/Strategies. Students comprehend a variety of texts drawing on useful strategies as needed. Students are expected to:
(B) ask and respond to questions about texts read aloud.
(5) Reading/Vocabulary Development. Students understand new vocabulary and use it correctly when reading and writing. Students are expected to:
(A) identify and use words that name actions, directions, positions, sequences, and locations;
6) Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Theme and Genre. Students analyze, make inferences and draw conclusions about theme and genre in different cultural, historical, and contemporary contexts and provide evidence from the text to support their understanding. Students are expected to:
(C) recognize sensory details
(13) Writing/Writing Process. Students use elements of the writing process (planning, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing) to compose text. Students (with adult assistance) are expected to:
(A) plan a first draft by generating ideas for writing through class discussion;
(E) share writing with others.
(18) Writing/Literary Texts. Students write literary texts to express their ideas and feelings about real or imagined people, events, and ideas. Students are expected to:
(B) write short poems that convey sensory details.
(28) Listening and Speaking/Speaking. Students speak clearly and to the point, using the conventions of language. Students continue to apply earlier standards with greater complexity. Students are expected to share information and ideas about the topic under discussion, speaking clearly at an appropriate pace, using the conventions of language.
(29) Listening and Speaking/Teamwork. Students work productively with others in teams. Students continue to apply earlier standards with greater complexity. Students are expected to follow agreed-upon rules for discussion, including listening to others, speaking when recognized, and making appropriate contributions.
Note: These lesson plans were published before AASL’s Standards for the 21st Century Learner were available.
v Which AASL indicators align with this lesson? Give both the number and the description for each.
(I fail to see the difference between this question and the question regarding the AASL indicators aligned with the reading comprehension strategy. I think all of these indicators align with both the RCS and the lesson.) I'm not quite sure how to separate the two...
The indicators below are from the AASL S4L. The ones above are from the TEKS.
In both cases, I think too many are listed.
These are the S4L I identified for this lesson: http://storytrail.com/Impact/Chapter_4/main1.htm
1.4.2- Use interaction with and feedback from teachers and peers to guide own inquiry process
1.1.9 Collaborate with others to broaden and deepen understanding
1.3.4- Contribute to the exchange of ideas within the learning community
2.1.2 - Organize knowledge so that it is useful._
2.1.5- Collaborate with others to exchange ideas, develop new understandings, make decisions and solve problems.
2.2.4- Demonstrate personal productivity by completing products to express learning.
2.3.1- Connect understanding to the real world.
3.1.3 - Use writing and speaking skills to communicate new understandings effectively.
3.1.4- Use technology and other information tools to organize and display knowledge and understanding in ways that others can view, use and assess.
3.2.3- Demonstrate teamwork by working productively with others.
3.3.5 - Contribute to the exchange of ideas within and beyond the learning community.
3.4.1- Assess the processes by which learning was achieved in order to revise strategies and learn more effectively in the future.
4.1.1- Read, view, and listen for pleasure and personal growth.
4.1.3- Respond to literature and creative expressions of ideas in various formats and genres.
4.1.8 - Use creative and artistic formats to express personal learnings.
Implementation
· Process
Motivation
Motivation is also known as “anticipatory set” in the Madeline Hunter, EEI lesson plan design.
v Will this invitation to learn be effective in capturing students’ interest? Why or why not?
Playing "ocean music" can be relaxing for children, but I think the motivation process is more effective using the sensory center for students to use their five senses to explore items from the beach. Of course, I've been teaching in a desert that is located on the Persian Gulf so my students would be eager to participate. You'd be surprised just how many students (from my area and elsewhere) who don't go to the beach. I think inviting children to bring one item that they have found or used at the beach will add more to the "anticipatory set" because children will make a personal connection to the activity.
In the first session of this lesson, students rotate through sensory centers, and I think it will be very effective because it is hands on. Students have the opportunity to actually see, touch, smell, etc. items from the beach or ocean. It is the next best thing to taking them to the beach, so I think it will help students start to think about the ocean before beginning the lesson.
Agreed. This is critical background knowledge particularly for desert or mountain students who may have never seen the ocean. You're right. Motivation in the younger grades is not as much of an issue as it becomes in upper grades. Hmmmmm....
v What are your ideas to increase student buy-in to this lesson? Give at least one.
Well I think a beach unit would be awesome, and could incorporate this lesson. I live near the beach (Corpus Christi) so, I think it would be awesome to actually take students on a field trip to the beach to get the experience. I understand field trips are not always easy to plan and engage in, but I do believe providing students with real experiences is the key to helping them “buy-in” on lessons.
Agreed
I would capture student interest by providing additional opportunities for students to bring in something they have found on a beach somewhere to use in the creation of their own group or personal list poem, and if at all possible, I'd organize a field trip to the beach.
Agreed
Student-friendly Objectives
v Are these objectives at the instructional level of the targeted students? Give an example.
Classifying sensory images and using all five senses are certainly appropriate to the level of the targeted students. I'm not so sure about the category matrix, but composing a group poem is definitely an appropriate outcome. I'm not familiar with the matrix and I'd would have to actually use it a time or two to make a more informed judgment.
Yes, I think the student-friendly objectives in this lesson target Emerging students around the 1st grade level. There is only 2 or 3 objectives which is manageable for younger students, and will help them not feel frustrated or overwhelmed. Day 1 Objectives: 1. Use all five senses. 2. Classify sensory images.
Agreed
v Are there terms in these objectives that may need to be taught to students? Give an example.
I think for Day 1 Objective 2 (Classify sensory images) the word “classify” may need to be explained to younger students. I also think on Day 2 Objective 3 (Use the rubric to self-assess the poem and the illustration), the words “self-assess” will probably need to be taught
Vocabulary needs to be developed throughout the lesson. Story elements, and comprehend are words that need to be addressed with young students (perhaps stating them in simpler terms might be necessary). Organizing information and self-assessing are processes that needs to be modeled, not just explained.
Coteaching vocabulary, strategies, and procedures is one of the benefits of classroom-library collaboration. When students use terms and processes in multiple environments, they are more likely to retain it.
Presentation
v Describe the modeling aspect of this lesson.
In this lesson one teacher reads a book about the ocean and the other teacher listens, like the students (modeling what they should be doing), then shares her visualization of the ocean and beach focusing on the sensory details. The teacher listening is modeling the whole time what the students should be doing and gives them an example of how to verbalize what they are seeing in their head as they listen to the story.
Here is a coteaching image related to this lesson from my Web site: http://storytrail.com/Impact/Chapter_4/main1.htm
v How are the benefits of two or more educators maximized in the presentation component?
On Day 2 of the lesson, the class is split up into two smaller groups and the teachers’ help students come up with a group poem about the ocean. This helps students get more one-on-one attention and allows for their opinions and thoughts to be heard more, than it would working in a large (whole class) group.
The students are divided into two different groups and that makes managing the questioning techniques easier. It also gives the students the opportunity to participate and contribute more to the group poem. There is more active participation with a smaller group.
Agreed
Student Participation Procedures
or
Student Practice Procedures
v Are the directions clear? Give an example.
Yes, I believe the directions are clear and to the point. Example: 1. Think-pair-share. 2. Raise hand to share with the class. 3. Tell which sense and color of marker should be used to record information on the matrix.
The directions are very clear. After the students share their visualizations with a partner, one educator will be the recorder while the other elicits responses from the children.
Agreed
Guided Practice
v How are the benefits of two or more educators maximized in the guided practice component?
Conferences – both teachers are able to conference with students and help them self-asses their poems. Having two teachers available to conference one-one-one with students allows for students to get more individualized help and attention. It is very stressful for one teacher to conference with 20 or so students in a short amount of time, so having two teachers conducting conferences means less stress for the teacher.
Both educators monitor the students sensory imagery in their poems while reminding them to use the rubric to guide their work. Conferencing with students is ongoing throughout this part of the lesson.
Yes, support for writing conferences is one aspect of coteaching that classroom teachers especially value.
Closure
v Are students active in the closure component? What are students doing for closure?
Day 1 students are not really active in the closure because they are just listening to the re-reading of the book “Hello Ocean.” In Day 2 students are really active in the closure because they are asked to share their poems with the class, and the students that are listening to their peers read are asked to find the strongest sense in each poem and whisper it to a partner.
The class comes together at the end of Day 2 to share their poems and illustrations. Students are asked to identify the strongest sense in each poem read as they whisper their response to a classmate.
Actually, the students also come together at the end of Day 1 to share the group poems. The sensory List Poem and Illustration are used on Day 1 to assess the group poems and then brainstorming ideas for illustrating the group poems are shared.
Yes, I believe this is one weakness of this lesson. The first-day closure is teacher directed. Students could be asked to review the group category matrix.
Reflection
v How is the reflection component related to the learning objectives?
In this lesson the reflection has a list of questions, one being: How did the sensory images help us understand spending a day at the ocean? I think this question relates to the 1st Objective: Classify sensory images by the sense organ and sense used for that experience. Students will have to connect their ocean experiences with their senses.
The reflection circles back to both objectives. The students think about how the sensory images help them understand a day at the ocean, and with guidance they have an opportunity reflect on what background knowledge they brought to the activity and what knowledge was gained from the participating in activity.
Making time for reflection is sometimes difficult. If we value metacognition (being able to articulate what we learned and how we learned it), then we should insist that students have time to reflect.
· Extensions
v What are your other ideas for extensions to this lesson? Describe at least one.
Well this lesson can be extended in so many ways. Aside from actually taking students to the beach on a field trip, I think it would be neat for students to sort sea shells from the beach by appearance and characteristics. Then students could write a poem just on sea shells.
Yes, great idea, and to stay with the "using sensory images" RCS, they could describe their categories using sensory details that would appear in their poems.
This is a good lead into a science unit about attributes of earth materials (rocks, seashells, sand, soil). The lesson can also be extended with the help of the technology facilitator to make a poetry presentation through the use of images and audio in order to share their poems with another class or with the parents. Additional poetry lessons and opportunities to use Writer's Workshop to compose poetry would be of high interest to the students at this point.
Finally, I would spend the time with students to find other books that use sensory images to convey feelings or elicit mental images. I would utilize a poetry corner where students could write their own poems or peruse other poetry books. I'd also create a word wall to display and develop vocabulary.
Brilliant! All of these ideas provide further opportunities to integrate the resources on the library and the expertise of the school library.
Brava for your thoughtful and thorough analysis of this lesson.
Remember: Extensions are further invitations to classroom-library collaboration. They are worth thinking about during the planning stage!
Plus Individual Reflection – 20 Possible Points – See the A.3.2 Rubric for details.